Battery operated lamp having anchoring means to position the lamp and hold the switch closed



Sept. 8,11953 H. G. CLARK 2,651,710

' BATTERY OPERATED LAMP mwmc ANCHORING MEANS o POSITION THE LAMP AND HOLD THE SWITCH CLOSED Filed Feb. 20, 1950 INVENTOR. 1 /525627 G. CLARK A TTORNEYS I Patented Sept. 8, 195 3 BATTERY OPERATED LAMP HAVI NG AN- CHORING MEANS TO POSITION THE LAMP AND HOLD THE SWITCH CLOSED Herbert G. Clark, Bellevue, Wash. 7 "Application February 20, 1950, Serial N 0. 145,158

3 Claims. (o1."240- 1o.e

This invention relatesto a battery-operated portable lamp for jack-o-lanterns and similar applications. Its chief object is to provide a compact, inexpensive, and reliable dry cell and lamp bulb holder combination, which includes switch means operable automatically to complete the lamp circuit upon installation of the lamp in the jack-o-lantern, for instance, and to break such circuit when the lamp is removed.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel dry-cell operated lamp construction, in which the parts are easy to assemble and disassemble, can be of rugged though inexpensive construction, and will hold well together under conditions of rough usage.

Briefly described, my novel dry cell operated lamp construction comprises a dry cell holder in the form of a two-part cylindrical plastic shell, one end of which has an opening to admit the terminal end of a lamp bulb for contacting the dry cell center post, and the opposite end of which i provided with an opening'to admit-a switch element for contacting and disengaging from the opposite end or terminal of the dry cell, thereby to make and break the lamp circuit. 1

Preferably such dry cell holder comprises semicylindrical parts or halves of substantially identical form, such as can be made in the same mold, which parts are normally held togetherby snap-action elements, but can tie-separated for replacement of a dry cell by'applicationofa reasonable force. A longitudinal groove in the outer shell wall receives the intermediate portion of a clamp-on wire-conductor, which'at one end carries a lamp bulb socket positioned in one end opening of the shell. The oppositeendof this conductor forms a resilient switch arm which has a switch-contact portion underlyingthe bottom opening of the shell and'is bentupward-for-dedownwardly to hold the lamp, like-a candle, in

upright position.

These and other features, objects, and advantages of the invention; including certain details of its preferred and illustrated form, will now be described in detail by reference to the accompanying drawings." a

Figure 1 is an exploded isometric view ct the novel lamp.

Figure 2 is a side .view'of the lamp, with parts broken away to show certain details.

Figure 3 is a top view of the same.

The cylindrical dry cell holder is formed as a hollow shell in two semicylindrical halves-1 Uand I2, which are substantially identical in shape and can be made of a plastic material formed in the same mold. The two parts are held together forded. between. the detent bulbs 28 and complemental resiliently expansible sockets 30 located at-opposite ends of both meeting shell edges. These sockets are formed by parallel, closely spaced, radially projecting ears 30, between and past the restricting initial contact edges of which the bulbs 28 are wedged, and which'ears then exert pressure toward each other to retain the bulbs, when the two halves l0 and I2 are forced together in registry. The bulbs are held between the respective pairs of ears because of therelative divergence of the inner faces of the latter as shown at the bottom of Figure 2.

Each of these shell halves l0 and I2 also preferably has a tongue 24 and'a groov 26 along its respectivelongitudinal edges, matching complemental elements on the other shell half to locate the two halves in both lateral and longitudinal registry .whenbrought together. As

shown, these tongueand groove elements may extend virtually the entire length of the longitudinal surfaces which form theinterface between the parts It] and I2 in assembled position. As thus assembled thedry cell holder or shell has endwallseeach with. a central aperture 20 formed by complemental semicircular, notches .half if the tongues 24 and grooves 26 were not provided.

Both shell we have longitudinal grooves 14 in their outer wall, which extend from top to bottom, preferablymidway between their longiv.tudinaledges. The. part,l2 has a small aperture 16 in, its groove 1,4,genera1ly midway between its ends, to-receive the bent upper end of a pointed anchor pin l8, lying partly in the groove [4 of such partand projecting partly below-the holder, as shown best inFigure 2. vTheend of pin [8 passing through hole .I 6-may be bent .back on itself toanchor the pin. securely inthe hole. The other half l-0 of the semicylindrical shell requires no such'aperture, but may, have one if the aperture is. formed ,in.the.,molding operation and it is desired to-manufacture both halve l0 and I2 inthe sar'n'emold. l .The. lamp assembly s completed by the .clampon wire conductor 32, the intermediate straight -portion of which is ada'pted to hem thegroove H! of the part Ill. The grooves in both parts Ill and I2 may be of dove-tail cross section, and the wires I8 and 32 may be of such size as &0

be snapped laterally into their respective grooves so that they will be retained in their grooves againstaccidental displacement. The upper end of the conductor wire, projecting slightly above the holder, is turned inward and forms a helical spiral 34, constituting a screw socket for the lampbulb 35, to hold such bulb positioned with its terminal end portion in contact with the upper end of the dry cell, as shown in Figure 3. A spot of suitable adhesive may be placed onthe wire and bridging the groove to secure the wire to the case so as to hold the conductor 32 from sliding upward and breaking contact between the lamp bulb and the dry cell terminal. The lower end portion 35 of the clamp-on wire con ductor 32. curves. first somewhat outward, then downward and inward toward the dry cell holder axis. then upward toward and preferably slightly into,but not entirely through, the lower end wall aperture 26, Where itforms a peak 38, constituting aswitoh contact, and then curves downward rather sharply to itsend' 40.

In the, relaxed or switch-open position of the wire, shown by solid lines in Figure 2, the lower end or tail portion 50' is in its lowermost position, and no part of. the wire contacts the bottom of the dry. cell within the dry cell holder. However, when the lamp is. installed in a jack-o-lantern, for instance, by pressing its anchor pin [8 into the bottom of the. jack-o -lantern, the tail 4!] is forced upward until the, conductor peak 38 contacts the. bottom of the dry cell 22, as shown by dotted lines in Figure 2, completing the electric circuitfor thelamp.

The conductor wire 32. is. resilient, so that its lower end recoversits original switch-open shape, and. thereby opens the lamp circuit, automatically when the lamp is lifted off its base. Preferably the wire is suificiently flexible, however, that the mere, combined weight of the lamp parts resting upon it is sufficient to close the switch and complete the. circuit, the anchor pin l8 serving. simply to hold. the lamp upright and to prevent it sliding, when the jack-o-lantern' is tilted. It will be noted. that the entrance of the wire coil 34, forming the lamp bulb socket, into the aperture 2a at the top of the battery shell will restrain swiveling of wire. 32 which would swing peak. 33 out of. registry with the aperture 20 in the bottomof the shelL.

it. will be. understood that the lamp form shown in the drawings and described in detail is primarily illustrative, and that certain variations may be made within the. principles of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

I claim as my invention:

1. A battery operated lamp. comprising a. normally upright dry cell. holding casing having apertured ends, a. lamp socket received in said aperture in the upper end. of said casing operable to. hold the terminal end of a lamp bulb in contact with the upper end of a dry cell received in said casing, a switch wire having one end secured to said lamp bulb socket, its central portion extending from the socket end of said casing lengthwise thereofv beyond the lower end of the casing, and thev end portion of said wire remote from its socket-:connected. end including an upwardly bent portion in registry with the bottom end aperture of said casing, a pressure-receiving portion inclined from said upwardly bent portion downwardly and engageable with a surface beneath said. casing to hold said upwardly bent wire portion in contact with a dry cell in said casing, and said wire portion between said upwardly bent, portion and. said. central. Portion being curved. and resiliently biased. in a direction to swing said upwardly bent wire portion downwardly from said cell end when pressure is removed from the lower end of said wire, and holding. means. carried by said casing and operabletosecure said casing relative to such surface in position to maintain pressure thereof against. said. pressure receiving wire portion to hold the upwardly bent portion thereof in dry cell. contacting position.

2. Abattery operated lamp comprising a normally upright dry cell holding casing having apertured ends and anexternal groove extendinglengthwise thereof substantially from end to end, a lamp socket received in said aperture in the upper end of said casing operable to hol the terminal end of a lamp bulb in contact wit the upper end ofa dry cell received in said casing, a switch wire having one end secured to said lamp bulb socket, its central portion extending from the socket end of said casing lengthwise thereof beyond the lower end of the casing and received in said casing groove, and the end portion of said wire remote from its socket-connected end including an upwardly bent portion in registry with the bottom end aperture of said casing a pressure-receiving portion inclined from said upwardly bent portion downwardly and engageable with a surface beneath said casing to hold said upwardly bent wire portion in contact with a dry cell in said casing, and said wire portion between said upwardly bent portion and said central portion being curved and resiliently biased in a direction to swing said upwardly bent wire portion downwardly from said cell end when pressure is removed from the lower end of said wire, and holding means carried by said casing engageable with the switch wire engaging surface adjacent to such pressure receiving wire portion and operable t secure said casing relative to such surface in position to maintain pressure thereof against said pressure receiving wire portion to hold the upwardly gent portion thereof in dry cell contacting posiion.

3. The lamp defined in claim 1, in which the holding means is a wire secured to the side of the casing adjacent to the downwardly inclined pressure receiving portion of the switch wire to penetrate the switch wire engaging surface at a location immediatelyadjacent to such pressure receiving Portion of the switch wire.

HERBERT G. CLARK.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,226,926 Tiscione 1 May 22, 1917 2,020,192; Kingsbury Nov. 5, 1935 2,081,656. Anthony May 25, 193'? 2,104,888 Spahr Jan. 11, 1938 2,236,071 Roskam et a1 Mar. 25, 1941 2,399,921 Golob et al. ay-7, 194s FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 428,848 France June '30, 1 910 431,914 England Mar. 21, 1938 533,189 England Feb. '7, 194:1 

